The Rapture
“For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” I Thessalonians 4:16-17
As those who study scripture know, the term “rapture” is not in the Bible, but the reality of it is clearly shown in the above verses. To be raptured means to be carried away in body or spirit, or rather body and spirit. Those who have died will have a new body with which their spirit which has been in heaven will be united, and those who are still alive will also receive a new body united with their spirit that was made alive when they received Christ as Lord and Savior.
As with many passages of scripture, there is disagreement about when this rapture will take place. Many believe that it will be before the seven-year period of tribulation begins (pre-trib), others believe it will occur midway through the seven years (mid-trib), and others believe that believers will have to endure the entire seven years before Jesus takes them out (post-trib). There are those who do not believe in the rapture at all, but it is evident by scripture that Jesus will retrieve His church from the earth at some point. Many who ascribe to the pre-trib idea are absolutely sure that this is when the rapture will occur. Jesus told the church in Philadelphia, one of the seven churches to whom He addressed the first part of the book of Revelation, that because of their faithfulness, He would keep them from the hour of temptation which will come upon all the world to try earth’s population (Revelation 3:10). I hope that the pre-tribbers are right, but I am not absolutely certain about the timing of the rapture. There are some things in scripture which I am absolutely certain about, for instance, that Jesus is the only way of salvation, that God made the world in six days, that Jesus was born of a virgin, and that He is coming again to claim His church and banish evil from the earth. The radio preacher, Steve Brown, says that he is “pan-trib”, that is, that it will all “pan out” however God sees fit. Recognizing that events occur as God allows and on His timetable is probably the best way to look at it.
If we examine scripture closely, we can see that the rapture and the second coming of Jesus are two separate events. Jesus will descend from heaven with a shout, but it will be the voice of the archangel, Michael (Revelation 12:7) that will be heard likely only by those who are saved. Remember when Jesus said that His sheep hear His voice (John 10:27)? I would imagine that applies to whoever gives out a shout as directed by Him. God’s trumpet will blow, but again, only the saved will hear it. I think that this will happen without the unsaved world being aware of it until they start missing people. I have no idea how the ungodly authorities will explain it. One Christian author believes that the graves will not be disturbed. Since Jesus can walk through walls (Luke 24:36), He can surely raise a body from a grave without opening the grave and then change the body in the twinkling of an eye. Thus, the dead will be raised to life, the living will be caught up with them having new bodies as well, and all will join Jesus in the air, always being with Him for all eternity. Jesus doesn’t set His feet on the earth, on the mount of Olives, until He returns in His second coming after the tribulation and before the 1,000-year reign (Acts 1:11-12). If indeed the pre-tribbers are right, we don’t know how long it will be between the rapture and the second coming. Apparently though, the world will be in such turmoil that those who are left will be demanding a leader to bring peace and calm, and in will step the antichrist.
You know how our minds think up things when considering something like the rapture? Imagine a busy intersection at rush hour when Jesus snatches up all the redeemed. Several cars become empty and begin running into other cars. Imagine being an unsaved passenger in a car driven by one who is saved. How about pilots and co-pilots on a flight who are both saved? Paul called the taking up of believers a “mystery” (I Corinthians 15:51), and it is a mystery for no one knows exactly how or when it will take place, but that it will happen is for certain. Perhaps God kept it a mystery because He knew that if man could understand all the details, then he would try and thwart God’s plan. Unscrupulous people would probably try and profit off it by claiming they had a sure-fire way to escape the end times.
The most important thing concerning the rapture is not when or how, but that we are prepared to be “swept off our feet in the twinkling of an eye” by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. As Paul admonished, let’s encourage each other with the promise of an eternity with Jesus. Good-bye cruel world.